Magickal Societies
There are five societies in the Caerleon chronicle which use the system laid out in Mage: Sorcerer Revised. Psychics and mediums also exist but there's no organized society in Caerleon strictly for them at the start of the chronicle. Likewise, its possible to be an "independent" who's either self-taught or had a mentor of some kind. However, these societies provide the benefits of resources and community; they are equal "players" in the political landscape as the vampires, werewolves and kithain. Membership in one of these societies is -not- required to play a metahuman based on the Sorcerer Revised rule system. The societies found in that book are not available for player characters at this time. *The Centurians/Cult of Mithras *The Gwyddon see also Ashtree Coven *House of Hermes see also Tredegar House *Scarlet Circle see also *Witch-Hunters see also St Woolos Cult of Mithras in Caerleon The worship of Mithras was brought into the region by Roman soldiers at the fort of Isca. Some of them were Silver Fang kinfolk, others worshipped the vampire Mithras as a living god, the avatar of the Sol Invictus. Some Fianna Song-Keepers claim that the Silver Fangs of Great Britain were cursed by Luna because their kinfolk turned to the worship of a vampire. In ancient times, the Cult of Mithras was distinctly patriarchal but now accepts women. Their headquarters is in the National Roman Legion Museum in Caerleon. The Cult of Mithras glorifies Roman-Britanic culture, archaeology, bacchanalia-like festivals, martial tourneys and a number of solar-based pagan rituals including within the ruins of the amplitheatre, baths and barracks. The society hides in plain sight. Not all of its members are magicians of any appreciatiable power. Its leader, Benedict Auerelius Sinclair, vanished in early 1945 just at the end of World War II. His son Michael Osiris Sinclair who'd fought as a young soldier in Germany, assumed the mantle in 1950. Michael has not aged in sixty years- he might be a ghoul of Prince Idrus ap Rhodri or there might be other factors involved. Many of the Mithratic sorcerers age slowly or not at all. The Gwyddon (Groveborn) Ashtree Coven in Allt-yr-yn is the largest group of witches in the chronicle. Some are kinfolk and/or kithain; many current members had mothers or grandmothers who were part of the coven as well. Since the 1990s, the group has been much more public, including a website and meetings in the Ysbrydnos bookstore-cafe in the Newport Market. Traditionally a matriarchal society, it has opened itself up to men during the last thirty years. There are a number of uninitiated or auxillery members who self-proclaim themselves as witches but have no real magick and have not been initiated into the Grove itself just outside of Allt-yr-yn. The current coven leader is 80 year old Gwenda Price who's suffering from health problems. The Moon-Daughters are supportive of the Ashtree Coven but protect the Veil scrupulously around them. Likewise, the Kithain tend to protect their Right of Ignorance. House of Hermes The HoH is secretly established in the Tredegar House and serves the Newport City Council in keeping the region as "metaphysically quiet and calm as possible." They have a legacy that began with the canonical House Ex Miscellanea of Order of Hermes but there are no MtA-esque mages involved. The entire House are sorcerers of various paths, many of whom were recruited by Hermetics teaching in private schools and local universities. They are extremely private and exclusive, always mentoring new recruits with older and experienced magicians who can spend 3-5 years training their apprentices before they are fully initiated into the House. The HoH has a number of policies meant to protect themselves from supernatural and metahuman forces: they have collected a great deal of accurate information about vampires, werewolves, ghosts, the fae, magick and psychic power. However, the leaders of the House can to be very circumspect on what they release to younger members, typically providing it on a "need to know" basis. Unlike the witch-hunters, the HoH generally seeks out the most peaceful resolution possible with any supernatural crisis they are faced with. They generally only use lethal force in matters of self-defense and do not go out of their way to agitate vampires, werewolves, etc., only becoming involved in situations they either stumble upon or are brought to them by the City Council. The current Primus (House Leader) is Lloyd Tibbot. Scarlet Circle The Scarlet Circle has been a wyrm cult in Great Britain since the Dark Ages. They were originally known as the Red Circle. They violated the Great River Caern in London during the 1100s and more recently brought the entity called Red Jack through the guantlet and set it loose upon the Silver Fangs of Austere Howl and their Fianna allies. The Scarlet Circle of Gwent-Glamorgan operates independently from any other sect of the Red Circle. They participate in the Midnight Court with their leader, Jericho, one of its highest-ranking members. The Scarlet Circle has no current base of operations outside of the The Riverfront. Their ultimate goal is to shatter the guantlet to release the cthonic horrors of the Malfeans (who they call the Primordials) into reality to shatter and re-set the Wheel of Ages. They follow the principles of vice, believing that by perpetuating the "deadly sins" in themselves and others, they feed the Wyrm. Witch-Hunters of St. Woosley By the end of the Roman occupation, most of Wales had become Christian with a strong emphasis on the Anglican Church and nonconformist churches. There are a number of local stories about Saint Gwynllyw Milwr patron saint to pirates and warriors and father of Saint Caradoc. The Witch-Hunters of St. Woosley were founded around the time of his death circa 500 AD; if they ever had direct ties to the Order of St. Leopold, those have been lost. The society calls itself the Knights of Gwynllyw but they are better known to the supernatural community as the Witch-Hunters of St. Woosely, named after the Newport Cathedral that serves as the base of their operations. The Witch-Hunters actively search for "Spawn" as they dub werewolves, vampires, changelings or any other creature outside of human norm. There are only a dozen or so active witch-hunters, many of them young who were recruited after exposure to some form of "monster" that left them eager vigilantes. While the witch-hunters remain nominally a religious order with the trappings of post-modern holy crusaders not all of them are driven by spiritual conviction as much as hatred, fear, and a grim desire for vengeance. The current Grand Master (title for leader) is Rosemary Smith, daughter of the late Sir Malcolm Smith, the previous leader who was killed in 2004 by one of the Midnight Court. go to the Main Caerleon Page or to the Metahuman Main Page